43 Hours on the Amtrak Southwest Chief • Hacker News Board

Re: 43 Hours on the Amtrak Southwest Chief

#151

Post by sizzzzlerz » Sat, Feb 04, 2023, 5:14 AM UTC

Did a trip on Amtrak last June. Coastal Starlight, Empire Builder, and California Zephyr over 12 days staying in a roomette on each leg. Room was small but comfortable. Meals were ok. Scenery was boring to spectacular. Downside was each train was late. It was slow. The cars were dirty, very dated and when underway, bounced around worse than a rodeo horse. It was very noisy at night with the stops we made and train whistles blowing seemingly constantly.

Would I do it again? Probably not.

Re: 43 Hours on the Amtrak Southwest Chief

#152

Post by oefrha » Sat, Feb 04, 2023, 5:18 AM UTC

jdwithit wrote: post #126

serf wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>2) Single riders should be given both seats on these journeys. I was like 19 when I did this journey and an unusual middle aged lady was placed next to me. She kept asking me for medicines and fell asleep on my shoulder. on one hand, I get it -- that experience would drive me nuts and I have had similar stuff occur. On the other hand , I've had a few good conversations with row-mates in planes. the forced interactio…

If I'm by myself on a plane, I REALLY do not want to talk to my row mates. Getting sat with someone chatty is my nightmare. It's nothing personal. It's just that it's the very rare occasion I am not flying with my young kids and I am relishing the opportunity to play a video game or watch a movie or read without anyone bugging me :) The first time I had to travel for work after having kids was maybe the first time I'…

> Getting sat with someone chatty is my nightmare.

Put on a headset (not earbuds) and most will take the hint. I’ve endured too many forced conversations on planes and trains, but not since I started doing that.

Re: 43 Hours on the Amtrak Southwest Chief

#153

Post by bhk » Sat, Feb 04, 2023, 5:26 AM UTC

Interesting how this example did not offload airline demand ... instead it created it (for the return trip). I suppose it's best seen as recreation, not transportation.

Re: 43 Hours on the Amtrak Southwest Chief

#154

Post by xivzgrev » Sat, Feb 04, 2023, 5:28 AM UTC

I did a train from Seattle to Portland once. Highly recommend, very scenic. But don't feel need to take a train again. Would rather take a plane and spend more time in my destination.

Re: 43 Hours on the Amtrak Southwest Chief

#155

Post by langsoul-com » Sat, Feb 04, 2023, 5:39 AM UTC

I was tempted to do the same in Australia but the costs are stupid expensive.

Like thousands. You can go to holiday in Bali for that cost.

Re: 43 Hours on the Amtrak Southwest Chief

#156

Post by dreamcompiler » Sat, Feb 04, 2023, 5:40 AM UTC

hm-nah wrote: post #143

judge2020 wrote: post #120

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Amtrack has a page on it, with no route performing delivering more than half of riders on-time https://www.amtrak.com/on-time-performance

Part of the allure! “We’ll get ya there…sometime.” It’s not their fault. Passenger trains in the US run almost exclusively on freight lines. They are high risk, low revenue…burdens(?) from that perspective.

Amtrak has also been starved of cash by politicians who want to kill it, so they don't have the funds to properly maintain their rolling stock. Engine breakdowns are frequent.

Re: 43 Hours on the Amtrak Southwest Chief

#157

Post by dreamcompiler » Sat, Feb 04, 2023, 5:46 AM UTC

wincy wrote: post #128

munificent wrote: post #35

This past summer, I took the Coast Starlight from Seattle to Monterey with my wife and kids. I loved it. It's hard to convey how different it is from flying. Whenever I fly somewhere, especially these days when flying is such a miserable cramped experience, I always feel like my vacation starts after I endure the entire airport + plane experience. The whole travel part is in the same "chore" bucket as packing, findin…

So, do normal people not feel like they’re going to throw up literally the entire train ride? I had a hard time taking a half hour train ride, much less a long one, but I also have a hard time being in the back seat of someone else’s car. I feel like they must not because it’s very seldom talked about. But googling it says 1 in 3 people experience motion sickness. Maybe mine is just really severe? Without Dramamine o…

I don't, but if you're upstairs you'll notice the "inverted pendulum swaying effect" much more. I slightly prefer downstairs roomettes on Amtrak for this reason, even though they may be a bit noisier. It doesn't make me sick but it's distracting when I'm trying to sleep.

Re: 43 Hours on the Amtrak Southwest Chief

#158

Post by dreamcompiler » Sat, Feb 04, 2023, 5:52 AM UTC

pengaru wrote: post #84

If you enjoy cycling I highly recommend riding Amtrak somewhere you'd like to explore by bicycle with your whip checked "trainside" where it's fully assembled and ready to ride. There's something magical about getting off the train in a different state with your bicycle ready to go no worse for wear. Especially at smaller stations, where the conductor or luggage handler will directly hand you the bicycle from the lug…

Slightly OT but this is something I love about the Albuquerque airport. It's a big enough airport to have the usual amenities but it's right in the middle of town. You could walk to it from the university in a half hour if you wanted to.

Re: 43 Hours on the Amtrak Southwest Chief

#159

Post by yaomtc » Sat, Feb 04, 2023, 5:53 AM UTC

tuke wrote: post #57

The post suggests that "freight trains have priority." By law, passenger travel is expected to have "precedence." Read: https://www.amtrak.com/content/dam/projects/dotcom/english/p...

Here's the specifics in the law. U.S. Code Title 49 § 24308 - Use of facilities and providing services to Amtrak

https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/49/24308

https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=24308&f=treesort&fq=...

Re: 43 Hours on the Amtrak Southwest Chief

#160

Post by hackernewds » Sat, Feb 04, 2023, 5:54 AM UTC

dreamcompiler wrote: post #157

wincy wrote: post #128

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So, do normal people not feel like they’re going to throw up literally the entire train ride? I had a hard time taking a half hour train ride, much less a long one, but I also have a hard time being in the back seat of someone else’s car. I feel like they must not because it’s very seldom talked about. But googling it says 1 in 3 people experience motion sickness. Maybe mine is just really severe? Without Dramamine o…

I don't, but if you're upstairs you'll notice the "inverted pendulum swaying effect" much more. I slightly prefer downstairs roomettes on Amtrak for this reason, even though they may be a bit noisier. It doesn't make me sick but it's distracting when I'm trying to sleep.

what is this effect you speak of?